IRA Withdrawal Calculator

Enter your Current IRA Balance — the combined value of all traditional, SEP, and SIMPLE IRAs you plan to draw from. Set the Annual Withdrawal amount you plan to take each year. Enter your Current Age and Expected Annual Return.

Choose a Withdrawal Strategy: fixed annual amount (automatically raised to meet RMDs when required), RMD-only (no withdrawals until your RMD start age), or the greater of your fixed amount or the RMD.

Select your Filing Status (Single or Married Filing Jointly), enter your Other Taxable Income (wages, pensions, Social Security — the income your withdrawal stacks on top of), and choose your State of Residence. If you're under 59½, select a Penalty Exception if one applies.

In Advanced Options, enter your non-deductible IRA basis for pro-rata calculations, set the inflation rate for today's-dollar values, and adjust the projection length.

Current IRA Balance

The total balance across all your traditional, SEP, and SIMPLE IRAs. The IRS aggregates all these accounts when applying the pro-rata rule, so enter the combined total — not just one account.

Annual Withdrawal

The gross amount you plan to withdraw each year. If you choose the "fixed" strategy, this amount is used every year but is automatically increased to meet your Required Minimum Distribution when RMDs begin. If you choose "RMD only," this field is ignored until your RMD start age.

Withdrawal Strategy

• Fixed annual amount: Withdraws your specified amount each year. If the RMD for a given year exceeds this amount, the calculator uses the RMD instead — you cannot withdraw less than your RMD.
• RMD only: No withdrawals until your RMD start age. Then withdraws exactly the RMD each year based on the IRS Uniform Lifetime Table.
• Greater of fixed or RMD: Takes the larger of your fixed amount or the RMD, whichever is higher.

Current Age

Determines your birth year for RMD start age calculations, whether the 10% early withdrawal penalty applies (under 59½), and the additional standard deduction for age 65+.

Expected Annual Return

The average annual return on your IRA investments. A typical stock/bond blend returns 5–7% nominal. Conservative estimates produce more resilient plans.

Filing Status

Determines your 2026 federal tax brackets and standard deduction amount. Married filing jointly has wider brackets and a larger deduction ($32,200 vs $16,100 for single filers).

Other Taxable Income

Your annual income from all other sources — wages, pensions, Social Security, rental income, interest. The IRA withdrawal stacks on top of this income, so higher other income pushes the withdrawal into higher brackets.

State of Residence

Each state's top marginal rate is applied to the taxable portion of the withdrawal. States with 0% (Alaska, Florida, Nevada, etc.) have no income tax. Some states like Illinois, Mississippi, and Pennsylvania exclude retirement income — the calculator notes these exclusions.

Penalty Exception

If you're under 59½, the 10% early withdrawal penalty applies unless an exception is selected:

• SEPP / 72(t): Substantially equal periodic payments based on life expectancy. Must continue for 5 years or until 59½, whichever is later.
• Disability: Total and permanent disability as defined by the IRS.
• Medical expenses: Unreimbursed medical expenses exceeding 7.5% of AGI.

The penalty exception applies to all years where your age is under 59½.

Non-Deductible Basis

If you made after-tax (non-deductible) contributions to any traditional IRA, enter the total basis. The IRS pro-rata rule (Form 8606) determines the tax-free percentage of each withdrawal:

tax_free_ratio = non_deductible_basis / total_IRA_balance_before_withdrawal
tax_free_amount = withdrawal × tax_free_ratio

The calculator tracks remaining basis year by year — as basis is recovered through withdrawals, the taxable percentage increases.

Inflation Rate

Used to calculate today's-dollar values in the projection table, showing the real purchasing power of your remaining balance over time.

1. Year-by-Year Simulation

The calculator runs a year-by-year projection starting at your current age. For each year:

1. Determine withdrawal: Based on your chosen strategy (fixed, RMD, or the greater of both)
2. Apply pro-rata rule: Split the withdrawal into taxable and tax-free portions based on remaining basis
3. Calculate federal tax: Using the marginal method — tax_on(otherIncome + taxable) - tax_on(otherIncome) — with 2026 progressive brackets after the standard deduction
4. Calculate state tax: Taxable portion × state rate
5. Apply penalty: 10% on taxable portion if under 59½ and no exception
6. Calculate growth: Remaining balance × annual return
7. Record: All values for the projection table

2. Federal Tax (Bracket-Based)

Federal tax uses the shared calculateFederalTax function with 2026 brackets (IRS Rev. Proc. 2025-36 plus One Big Beautiful Bill amendments). The standard deduction is subtracted automatically:

Standard deduction (2026):
  Single: $16,100 (+ $2,050 if age 65+)
  Married: $32,200 (+ $3,300 if both 65+)

federal_tax = tax_on(other_income + taxable_withdrawal) - tax_on(other_income)

This marginal approach ensures the withdrawal is taxed at its actual bracket rate, not a flat rate.

3. Pro-Rata Rule (Form 8606)

The IRS treats all your traditional, SEP, and SIMPLE IRAs as one pool. The tax-free ratio is recalculated each year as basis is recovered:

tax_free_ratio = remaining_basis / balance_before_withdrawal
tax_free = withdrawal × tax_free_ratio
remaining_basis = remaining_basis - tax_free

4. RMD Calculations (SECURE 2.0)

RMD start age depends on birth year:

RMD amount uses the IRS Uniform Lifetime Table:

rmd = account_balance / distribution_factor

When your fixed withdrawal is less than the RMD, the calculator automatically uses the RMD instead. The penalty for missing an RMD is 25% of the shortfall.

5. Early Withdrawal Penalty

The 10% penalty applies to the taxable portion of withdrawals before age 59½, unless a qualifying exception is selected. The penalty is calculated each year independently — once you reach 59½, the penalty stops.

6. State Tax

state_tax = taxable_withdrawal × state_rate

Some states exempt retirement income entirely. The calculator notes these exclusions for Illinois, Mississippi, and Pennsylvania. Other states may offer partial exclusions — check your state's specific rules.

• Total Withdrawn: Cumulative gross withdrawals over the entire projection period.
• Total Taxes & Penalties: Federal tax + state tax + early penalties. The percentage shown is the lifetime blended effective rate.
• Total Net Received: What you actually keep after all taxes and penalties.
• Year 1 Marginal Bracket: The federal bracket your last dollar of income falls into in the first year.
• Balance Projection Chart: Shows your IRA balance declining over time. When it hits zero, you've depleted the account.
• Year-by-Year Table: Each row shows the withdrawal, tax breakdown, net received, end balance, and today's-dollar purchasing power.
• Today's $ Column: Your end-of-year balance adjusted for inflation — shows real purchasing power, not nominal dollars.

1. Fill lower brackets first: In years with low other income, withdraw up to the top of the 12% bracket. This is often cheaper than being forced into higher brackets later by RMDs.
2. Consider Roth conversions: Convert traditional IRA funds to Roth in low-income years before RMDs begin. You pay tax now at a lower rate and enjoy tax-free growth. Use the Roth conversion calculator.
3. Coordinate with Social Security: Delaying SS allows larger withdrawals or Roth conversions at lower rates before benefits and RMDs create higher taxable income.
4. Qualified Charitable Distributions (QCDs): After age 70½, donate up to $105,000 directly from your IRA to charity. A QCD counts toward your RMD but isn't included in taxable income.
5. Spread large needs across years: Instead of one large withdrawal, take money across two tax years to stay in lower brackets.
6. Move to a tax-friendly state: States like Florida, Texas, and Nevada have no income tax. Illinois and Mississippi exempt all retirement income.

1. Using a flat tax rate instead of brackets: A flat 22% rate overtaxes income in the 10% and 12% brackets and undertaxes income above 22%. This calculator uses actual 2026 progressive brackets.
2. Ignoring the standard deduction: The first $16,100–$35,300+ of income is tax-free. Calculators that skip this overstate tax by thousands.
3. Hardcoding RMD age at 73: Under SECURE 2.0, the start age is 73 for birth years 1951–1959 and 75 for 1960+. This calculator uses your birth year to determine the correct age.
4. Withdrawing less than the RMD: The 25% penalty for an RMD shortfall is one of the steepest in the tax code. This calculator automatically raises your withdrawal to meet the RMD.
5. Ignoring the pro-rata rule: You cannot selectively withdraw only your non-deductible contributions. Every withdrawal is a proportional mix of pre-tax and after-tax money.
6. Forgetting state taxes: A 5–10% state rate adds significantly to your tax burden over decades of withdrawals.

This calculator covers ordinary cash distributions from traditional, SEP, and SIMPLE IRAs. It does not model:

• Social Security taxation (tax torpedo): For the full SS taxation cascade, use the IRA withdrawal tax calculator.
• IRMAA surcharges: Medicare premium adjustments based on income from 2 years prior are modeled in the IRA withdrawal tax calculator.
• Net Unrealized Appreciation (NUA): Employer stock rolled from a 401(k) to an IRA loses NUA treatment. Consult a tax advisor.
• Roth conversions: For converting traditional to Roth, use the Roth conversion calculator.

Use the calculator above to project your IRA balance over time and see the true after-tax cost of your withdrawal plan. Test different strategies — fixed withdrawals, RMD-only, or a combination — to find the most tax-efficient approach.

For detailed single-year tax analysis, use the IRA withdrawal tax calculator. For broader retirement planning, see the main retirement calculator. Explore all our retirement calculators and the learning center for guides on tax-efficient withdrawal ordering and RMD strategies.